Before the start of the 2025 season, analysts and fans predicted the Patriots would just barely improve on their back-to-back 4-13 seasons, with only a few boldly suggesting that they might be on the cusp of making the playoffs as a wild card. There was no downplaying the schedule; it was more about downplaying the talent Mike Vrabel had assembled for this year's roster.
Yet now that they have reached an NFL high of 13 wins and have won the AFC East to put them at the No. 2 seed in the conference, the "easiest schedule ever" is all that is being discussed by those wanting to discredit what the Patriots have accomplished this year.
Despite preseason narratives predicting an 8-win season, they have blown those expectations out of the water and could be a Super Bowl contender. And because of that, their 2026 opponents have been nearly finalized, and the complaints about a "cupcake schedule" won't be a relevant argument any longer.
The Patriots won't be discredited for their success in 2026 based on their schedule like this season
Because the Patriots won the division in Week 17, their final opponents have been made official.
We now know who they will face at home and on the road next year, and based on how these teams have played this year, New England is in for a rough ride by facing up to nine potential playoff contenders, depending on who their last three opponents will ultimately be.
HOME | AWAY |
|---|---|
Buffalo Bills | Buffalo Bills |
Denver Broncos | Chicago Bears |
Miami Dolphins | Detroit Lions |
Green Bay Packers | Kansas City Chiefs |
Las Vegas Raiders | Los Angeles Chargers |
Minnesota Vikings | Miami Dolphins |
New York Jets | New York Jets |
Baltimore Ravens OR Pittsburgh Steelers | Seattle Seahawks OR San Francisco 49ers |
Houston Texans OR Jacksonville Jaguars |
That's a lot tougher than what they've dealt with this year, even though they weren't expected to do much winning even in 2025.
In 2026, it's confirmed they will face several playoff-bound teams (Bills, Broncos, Bears, Chargers, and Packers), and that number will only increase with three games yet to be played to solidify opponents, as all six teams are headed to the postseason.
For all the complaints about this year's schedule and how that somehow takes away from what the Patriots have accomplished or just how good Drake Maye is, they won't have that argument in one year's time, and hopefully, the Patriots will prove that it wasn't the schedule that made them good.
Knowing they have nearly $50 million in cap space to spend before the offseason, plus a good number of draft picks to continue building their young team, they should be even better next year, with invaluable experience from this season's success.
So there's no reason to believe they can't continue to impress next year.